Biometric system

Abstract

A biometric authentication system comprising headwear comprising a plurality of biosensors each configured to sample muscle activity so as to obtain a respective time-varying signal; a data store for storing a data set representing characteristic muscle activity for one or more users; and a processor configured to process the time-varying signals from the biosensors in dependence on the stored data set so as to determine a correspondence between a time-varying signal and characteristic muscle activity of one of the one or more users, and in dependence on the determined correspondence, authenticate the time-varying signals as being associated with that user.

The invention claimed is: 
     
       1. A biometric authentication system comprising:
 headwear comprising an optical sensor configured to capture a series of images of an area of skin on the face of a user so as to obtain an image signal characteristic of the area of skin imaged in the captured series of images, the optical sensor being configured to compare images of the series of images captured apart in time so as to detect movement of the skin relative to the sensor between those points in time, the series of images being processed to extract at least a velocity of movement of the area of skin being imaged as an image signal characteristic; 
 a data store for storing a data set representing skin characteristics for one or more users, the skin characteristics including one or more of: wrinkles, glyphic patterns, pigmentation, hair follicles, sebaceous pores, congenital lesions, sun spots, sun tanning, scars, infections, and inflammation; and 
 a processor configured to:
 process the image signal in dependence on the stored data set so as to determine a correspondence between the image signal and the skin characteristics of one of the one or more users; and 
 in dependence on the determined correspondence, authenticate the image signal as being associated with that user. 
 
 
     
     
       2. A biometric authentication system as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein extracting the velocity of movement comprises determining the transverse and/or vertical component of the movement and/or velocity of the skin. 
     
     
       3. A biometric authentication system as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the optical sensor is configured to image an area of skin that will, during a facial expression, move past the optical sensor such that the optical sensor can image an area of skin that is greater than the field of view of the optical sensor. 
     
     
       4. A biometric authentication system as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the series of images are captured by the optical sensor at a rate that permits the areas of the skin imaged by each of the series of images to overlap or abut one another. 
     
     
       5. A biometric authentication system as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the series of images of an area of skin of the user comprises a series of overlapping and/or abutting images permitting generation of a static image comprising a composite image formed from a plurality of images in the series of images. 
     
     
       6. A biometric authentication system as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the series of images of an area of skin of the user comprises a series of overlapping and/or abutting images permitting generation of a dynamic image comprising information on how at least a portion of the imaged area of skin changes through the series of images. 
     
     
       7. A biometric authentication system as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the headwear comprises one or more lens adapted to, in use when the headwear is worn, focus light reflected from an area of skin onto the optical sensor. 
     
     
       8. A biometric authentication system as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the optical sensor is configured to receive light reflected from the area of skin through a plane-polarized filter oriented such that, in use when the headwear is worn, the plane of polarization of the filter is substantially parallel to the plane of the area of skin. 
     
     
       9. A biometric authentication system as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the headwear comprises one or more monochromatic light sources and the optical sensor comprises a filter adapted to preferentially pass light of the colour emitted by the light source. 
     
     
       10. A biometric authentication system as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the optical sensor is an optical flow sensor configured to output as a time-varying signal a vector describing the direction and/or magnitude of skin movement over a predefined time period. 
     
     
       11. A biometric authentication system as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the area of skin imaged by the optical sensor is no larger than 20 square millimetres, no larger than 15 square millimetres, or no larger than 10 square millimetres. 
     
     
       12. A method for authenticating a user of headwear, the headwear comprising an optical sensor configured to capture a series of images of an area of skin on the face of a user, the method comprising:
 capturing, using the optical sensor, a series of images of an area of skin of the user to obtain an image signal characteristic of the area of skin imaged in the captured series of images, the optical sensor comparing images of the series of images captured apart in time so as to detect movement of the skin relative to the sensor between those points in time, the series of images being processed to extract at least a velocity of movement of the area of skin being imaged as an image signal characteristic; 
 processing the image signal in dependence on a data set representing skin characteristics for one or more users so as to determine a correspondence between the image signal and the skin characteristics of one of the one or more users, the skin characteristics including one or more of: wrinkles, glyphic patterns, pigmentation, hair follicles, sebaceous pores, congenital lesions, sun spots, sun tanning, scars, infections, and inflammation; and 
 in dependence on the determined correspondence, authenticating the image signal as being associated with that user. 
 
     
     
       13. A method for authenticating a user of headwear according to  claim 12 , the step of capturing the series of images of an area of skin of the user comprising capturing the series of images as the user performs one or more facial expressions. 
     
     
       14. A method for authenticating a user of headwear according to  claim 12 , the method comprising generating a signal to cause a user to perform a predetermined sequence of one or more facial expressions. 
     
     
       15. A method for authenticating a user of headwear according to  claim 12 , the method comprising processing the captured series of images so as to generate a composite image where the composite image images an area of skin larger than an area imaged in a single image of the captured series of images.